NMBCU Trials 4 2026 (U16)
20 players participated in this 6-round tournament, held from 24 Apr 2026 to 25 Apr 2026 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Top 10 Elo average was 1547, and top seed was Benjamin Banda (🇿🇦 RSA, 1752).
Sebastian Kapp (🇿🇦 RSA, 1679) won with 5.0/6, ahead of Garen TWIGG (4.5) and Benjamin Banda (4.5). Kapp shared the lead from round 4 and broke clear in the final round.
The biggest upset came in round 1: Nathan Norris (1420) beat Panashe George (1530), a +110-point gap.
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How it unfolded
Top 6 · 6 roundsSebastian Kapp led from R6; +0.5-point edge over the runner-up. Title race converged from 2 co-leaders at R4 to 1 by R6.
Sebastian Kapp takes the sole lead (5.0/6).
Sebastian Kapp drew with Benjamin Banda (Black).
Sebastian Kapp 3 wins (R2–R4)Benjamin Banda 3 wins (R2–R4)Garen TWIGG 3 wins (R1–R3)
Key matchups · top 4
Head-to-head between the four finishers| Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sebastian Kapp | * | ½ | 1 | 1 |
| 2Benjamin Banda | ½ | * | ½ | — |
| 3Garen TWIGG | 0 | ½ | * | 1 |
| 4Tyler Barry | 0 | — | 0 | * |
Grille américaine
| # | Player | Elo | Fed | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | Pts | Bu C1 | Bu | SB | Perf | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kapp, Sebastian | 1679 | RSA | =12N | +10B | +19N | +2B | =3N | +4B | 5.0 | 19.0 | 20.5 | 16.75 | 1778 | +24.0 |
| 2 | TWIGG, Garen | 1536 | RSA | +16B | +9N | +4B | −1N | +5B | =3B | 4.5 | 20.0 | 22.0 | 14.75 | 1742 | +63.6 |
| 3 | Banda, Benjamin | 1752 | RSA | =19B | +6N | +5B | +9N | =1B | =2N | 4.5 | 19.5 | 21.0 | 15.50 | 1726 | -4.4 |
| 4 | Barry, Tyler | 1448 | RSA | +17B | +7B | −2N | +15N | +14B | −1N | 4.0 | 17.5 | 19.5 | 10.00 | 1444 | -1.2 |
| 5 | Norris, Nathan | 1420 | RSA | +6B | +8B | −3N | +11B | −2N | =7B | 3.5 | 19.5 | 22.5 | 11.75 | 1559 | +35.2 |
| 6 | George, Panashe | 1530 | RSA | −5N | −3B | +20N | +10B | =7N | +11B | 3.5 | 17.5 | 17.5 | 7.75 | 1283 | -36.8 |
| 7 | Arries, Jayde | 1494 | RSA | +15B | −4N | =14N | +19B | =6B | =5N | 3.5 | 15.5 | 17.0 | 8.25 | 1460 | -7.2 |
| 8 | Magwa, Sanele | 1484 | RSA | +18B | −5N | −15B | +16N | =9B | +14N | 3.5 | 13.0 | 15.0 | 8.00 | 1555 | +14.8 |
| 9 | Arries, Keaton | 1591 | RSA | +11N | −2B | +10N | −3B | =8N | =12B | 3.0 | 18.5 | 21.5 | 9.25 | 1378 | -45.2 |
| 10 | Koj, Prince | 0 | RSA | +13B | −1N | −9B | −6N | +16B | +15N | 3.0 | 16.5 | 18.5 | 7.00 | 1454 | -22.8 |
| 11 | Zifo, Saqhama | 0 | RSA | −9B | +16N | +13B | −5N | +15B | −6N | 3.0 | 15.0 | 17.0 | 7.00 | 1403 | 0.0 |
| 12 | Heneke, Ruan | 1511 | RSA | =1B | −19N | −16B | +17N | +18B | =9N | 3.0 | 14.0 | 15.5 | 8.00 | 1435 | -21.6 |
| 13 | De Jager, Jaeden | 1430 | RSA | −10N | +18B | −11N | −14B | +20N | +17B | 3.0 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 4.00 | 2224 | +19.6 |
| 14 | Botlhole, Erato | 0 | RSA | F | +17N | =7B | +13N | −4N | −8B | 2.5 | 16.0 | 16.0 | 6.75 | 1376 | -22.4 |
| 15 | Douglas, Jody | 0 | RSA | −7N | +20B | +8N | −4B | −11N | −10B | 2.0 | 17.0 | 17.0 | 3.50 | 1350 | 0.0 |
| 16 | Smile, Osakhe | 1404 | RSA | −2N | −11B | +12N | −8B | −10N | +20B | 2.0 | 17.0 | 17.0 | 3.00 | 1385 | 0.0 |
| 17 | Petshwa, Ahlumile Qhayiya | 0 | RSA | −4N | −14B | +18N | −12B | +19N | −13N | 2.0 | 14.5 | 16.0 | 3.50 | 1378 | 0.0 |
| 18 | Gcwabe, Aventhandwa | 1425 | RSA | −8N | −13N | −17B | +20B | −12N | +19B | 2.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | 1.50 | 1273 | 0.0 |
| 19 | Prinsloo, Liam | 1440 | RSA | =3N | +12B | −1B | −7N | −17B | −18N | 1.5 | 18.0 | 20.0 | 5.25 | 1423 | 0.0 |
| 20 | FIDE 534048600 | 0 | — | F | −15N | −6B | −18N | −13B | −16N | 0.0 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 0.00 | 647 | 0.0 |
Key insights
Biggest movers and upsets — the story behind the numbers.
- 1TWIGG, GarenRSA+63.64.5 pts · #2
- 2Norris, NathanRSA+35.23.5 pts · #4
- 3Kapp, SebastianRSA+24.05.0 pts · #3
- 1Arries, KeatonRSA-45.23.0 pts · #16
- 2George, PanasheRSA-36.83.5 pts · #19
- 3Koj, PrinceRSA-22.83.0 pts · #6
- R1+110 Elo gap
- R3+107 Elo gap